Wool woven fabric, backing with paper. Three crowned birdmen with tails and wings, surrounded by ducks. The textile measures approx. 20-1/2" x 31". The Paracas culture was a Pre-Inca society between approximately 750 BCE and 100 CE that developed in the Paracas Peninsula, located in what today is the Paracas District of the Pisco Province in the Ica Region, Peru. Provenance: Ex-collection of Doris Cameron (d. 2006) of Fresno CA. This item entered her collection of Peruvian History prior to 1990 and had been shown and vetted by several museum curators between 1988-98. Chinese cabinet, top shelf.
Paracas textile art is considered as the best of all ancient cultures. They used vicuña wool or cotton; harmonious and with many colors, animal designs,anthropomorphous and geometric, some included feathers. One of the main reasons why the Paracas Culture is well known is for the quality of its textiles, especially those belonging to the "Paracas Necropolis" period, dating from 500 BC and constituting an exceptionally beautiful expression of this culture. As from the period of the Spanish conquest, the existence of these textiles, used as bartering items for diplomatic and military negotiations, as well as votive offerings in religious ceremonies and death shrouds, has been amply documented. It is important to stress that these textiles are constantly associated with circles of power. The most important rulers owned a greater number of them during their life, and were buried with a greater number at their death. Thus they may be considered to be a symbol of wealth. In some religious rites, textile items were actually "sacrificed", showing their primordial importance in the Paracas Culture.
800/1,000
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